Friday, February 01, 2008

My Friend Chris

Everyone has friendships that they formed in youth that were made to last. It’s not as common to find a close friend in adulthood, one that feels like you’ve been friends for longer than you really have.

Thanks to Leah, I was lucky enough to meet someone who fits that bill. Chris and I first met when Leah and I were dating. We quickly discovered a shared love of Irish drinking songs and whiskey, which, after we moved to Buffalo, lead to many a night of revelry and mornings of pounding hangovers and scratchy voices.

Chris put himself through law school with the help of a Navy ROTC scholarship. I’ve watched his career take him far. But I know he will always want to achieve more. Chris demands nothing but excellence from himself.

Chris is one of the most honest, moral, upstanding people I’ve ever met. Yet he also maintains a vibrancy of life that does not seemingly fit his persona. He is also hands down one of the most intelligent people I’ve ever met. He can sit and talk about any topic in the universe. And over fires in our back yard, we were wont to do just that.

Last fall, Chris was forced to put his life on hold. He was involuntarily recalled to service in Iraq. He arrived just before the New Year, and has been documenting his life on a blog – Chronicles of a Judge Advocate at War. Give it a read, and realize how lucky we all are.

I could rage on and on about how wrong I find his situation. But I will take my cue from Chris, who quietly and courageously accepted his responsibility and is serving his country to the best of his ability. I think about him every day.